KUALA LUMPUR: Former shuttler Iskandar Zulkarnain Zainuddin is set to strengthen the singles coaching set-up in the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM).

BAM have persuaded Iskandar to leave his current position as Ireland coach.

“We have appointed Iskandar to strengthen our singles coaching team. He will join on Oct 1,” said BAM secretary-general Datuk Kenny Goh.

“We have had negotiations for a while with him and he finally agreed to our terms and conditions last week.

“It’s up to singles coaching director Kenneth Jonassen whether he guides the women’s or men’s singles.”

BAM had been on the lookout for a replacement for women’s singles coach Jeffer Rosobin since the Indonesian resigned at the end of February.

Iskandar had confirmed in May that BAM approached him with a coaching offer.

The 33-year-old, who started coaching in Ireland four years ago, has steadily made a name for himself in Europe.

Iskandar has been instrumental in the rise of men’s singles player Nhat Nguyen, who is now ranked No. 31 in the world, and has helped elevate the profile of Irish badminton.

Under his guidance, Ireland qualified two players for the Paris Olympics last August, namely Nguyen and women’s singles shuttler Rachael Darragh, marking a major milestone for the country.

Iskandar first joined Ireland as a sparring partner for Nguyen during his preparations for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

He was later appointed as Nguyen’s full-time coach and eventually took over the entire singles programme.

Nguyen came close to realising Iskandar’s dream of winning a European medal this year, reaching the quarter-finals in Horsens, Denmark, before losing to France’s Alex Lanier.

In the Malaysian Masters in May, Iskandar guided Nguyen to a win over homester Leong Jun Hao in the first round.

The Irish player also stunned independent player and Paris Games bronze medallist Lee Zii Jia at the Orleans Masters in March.